A REGENCY MAHOGANY KNEEHOLE DRESSING-TABLE

BY GILLOWS

Details

A REGENCY MAHOGANY KNEEHOLE DRESSING-TABLE
By Gillows
The three-quarter galleried top with reeded edge, eared corners and concave centre above a mahogany-lined frieze drawer flanked by pedestals, each with a mahogany-lined frieze drawer above a geometrically-panelled door enclosing a shelf, flanked by turned and fluted columns and on brass caps and castors
51 in. (129 cm.) wide; 32¾ in. (83 cm.) high; 24 in. (61 cm.) deep

Provenance

Supplied in 1813 to William Powlett, 2nd Baron Bolton (1782-1850) for Hackwood.
By descent until sold in 1935 with Hackwood to William Berry, 1st Viscount Camrose (d.1954).
Thence by descent.

Literature

(Probably) Gillows Memorandum, May 1813, Lady Bolton's Bedroom: 'A Good Mahogany Dressing Table with a cupboard on each side kneehole in center (sic).
(Probably) Gillows Bill, July 1813, Center Bedroom: 'To a Mahogany hollow front knee hole Dressing Table 4ft 3 long by 2ft 0 with Reeded columns to suit Wardrobe on right brass sockett castors doors veneered with Birchings & beaded as usual' invoiced for £16 16s.

Lot Essay

Although the both Gillows' Memorandum and their bill mention only one dressing-table of this model, it is known that there were more than one in the house. As with other Gillow bedroom furniture, it seems likely that there was a second commission for the house, soon after July 1813, and it is obviously not possible to be certain of which commission this particular dressing-table was part.
A sketch for a related hollow-fronted dressing-table, with different patterned columnettes, features in the early 19th Century Gillow archives, Five dressing-tables, with commode-doors similarly enriched with fret-cornered ribbon mouldings, were commissioned from Gillow by T.W. Egerton for Tatton Park, Cheshire. They were invoiced for the same amount as the Hackwood table (N. Goodison and J. Hardy, 'Gillows at Tatton Park', Furniture History, 1970, p. 35, pls. 18a and 20a).

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